This invention relates to electrical devices for cooking, and more particularly to electrical cookers which quickly cook foodstuffs such as meat, including hamburger, poultry breasts, hot dogs, and the like, as well as ground meats, or pieces of meat, hash brown potato patties, potato slices, fish fillets, sausage pieces, eggplant slices, and other foodstuffs.
Due to health concerns, there is a desirability to cook foods without the use of cooking oils, fats or similar substances, and to remove the grease and liquids emanating from the foodstuffs during cooking. One method of preparing foods without the former and removing the latter is by grilling the foods in a broiler. One of the disadvantages of this method is that the foods tend to loose moisture during the grilling resulting in poor taste. A second disadvantage is that the grilling does not add flavor to the foodstuffs, and thus to impart flavor, seasonings must be added to the surface of the food. A third disadvantage is that foodstuffs which are to be cooked in small pieces or ground foodstuffs cannot readily be grilled in devices which are presently available.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a device which cooks foodstuffs without the need for oils, fats and similar substances and provides for the removal of grease and other liquid emanating from the foodstuffs from the immediate area of the foodstuffs.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a device which cooks foodstuffs and maintains the moisture content of the food during the cooking thereof.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a device which permits the introduction of flavor into the foodstuffs.
It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a device in which grease and other liquids emanating from the foodstuffs being cooked can be readily removed from the cooking chamber of the device during and/or following cooking.
It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a device in which foodstuffs in the form of small pieces or ground foodstuffs can be cooked and readily removed from the device without tipping or turning over the device to remove the cooked food.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description.